http://articles.cnn.com/2009-01-21/tech/supreme.court.reject_1_supreme-court-child-online-protection-act-high-court?_s=PM:TECH
The Supreme Court has blocked further consideration of a federal law designed to keep sexual material from underage users of the Web.
The justices without comment Wednesday rejected an appeal from the federal government to reinstate the Child Online Protection Act (COPA), passed by Congress in 1998. The high court and subsequent federal courts said the law — which has never taken effect — had serious free speech problems.
The Bush administration was a strong supporter of the law and the Justice Department led the fight in court to revive it.
The justices issued their ruling a day after all nine were on hand for the inauguration of President Barack Obama. Retired Justice Sandra Day O’Connor also attended the ceremony.
The case tested the free speech rights of adults against the power of Congress to control Internet commerce. The Supreme Court twice ruled against COPA, arguing that it represented government censorship rather than lawful regulation of adult-themed pornography businesses. The law would have prevented private businesses from creating and distributing “harmful” content that minors could access on the Internet.
Free speech advocates said adults would be barred access to otherwise legal material and that parental-control devices and various filtering technology are less intrusive ways to protect children.